Agreement enables Pharming to accelerate pharmaceutical development and stimulate medical device progress through its biomaterials program.
Pharming Group says it obtained an exclusive sublicense to patents and technology on recombinant fibrinogen from GTC Biotherapeutics for $500,000. The agreement also includes a royalty on commercial sales of recombinant human fibrinogen (rhFIB) .
These rights will enable Pharming to accelerate pharmaceutical development of rhFIB and stimulate medical device development through its biomaterials program, claims a Pharming spokesperson. Pharming has obtained exclusive licenses on recombinant fibrinogen for all indications in various territories including North America, Europe, and Japan.
The licenses are to recently issued patents owned by the American Red Cross, Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties, and the University of North Carolina on the production of recombinant fibrinogen in milk of transgenic animals, which are licensed to GTC from ProGenetics.
Pharming has a development program for recombinant human fibrinogen as a replacement therapy for genetic and acquired deficiencies of fibrinogen. The existing market size for fibrinogen deficiencies is estimated to be over $500 million in the developed world, notes Pharming. In addition to the deficiency market, rhFIB has the potential as a pharmaceutical product to address the significantly larger market of traumatic and surgical bleeding in excess of $1 billion, the firm adds.
